Thief King Ninetails?
by Litzana
Summary: My attempt to mesh together the Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokémon universes. It revolves around the two Yami's, and the trials and rivalry they face... Please review! No yaoi/yuri involved! Rated 'T' for blood and violence.
1. The Sealing

_Welcome to my only second fanfic ever. This, basically, is Pokémon-ising the entirety of Yu-Gi-Oh!_

_Every single series._

_Wellll… Every one that involves Bakura, anyway._

_And, just for you all, I'll create a special saga involving him during the Orichalcos arc._

_Just because you're all special._

_^.^_

_So, without further ado:_

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you:_

**Thief King... Ninetails?**

Prologue: Sealing

* * *

_Dawn. He could feel the burning in his muscles, as he ran from his pursuers.  
He could hear them catching up behind him. They were gaining....  
He burst out of the forest onto a short clifftop that led to a steep drop. Here he would make his stand... There was nowhere left to run._

_His pursuers, the Human Aura Guardian that ruled this area, and a Cresselia emerged from the forest, taking their time. They knew he was cornered.  
Behind him, a spout of water shot up from the sea, signalling the arrival of Kyogre.  
"You're a hard man to track, Bakura. Especially with the Evil One helping you."_

_The Aura Guardian smiled at him. He growled in return.  
"Oh, please. Let off with the 'innocent Ninetails' act. You are the Thief King Afekia Bakura, the agent of the evilest creature on this world. You have murdered and tortured thousands of innocent Humans and Pokemon. What do you say for yourself?"_

_Bakura growled again, before a dark shadow enveloped his body and he returned to his natural form, a tall, tanned white-haired man with a triple scar running down his face._

_He opened his mouth, and spoke, smiling sadistically. "I congratulate you. Not many people have forced me this far without dying… painfully." He narrowed his eyes. "Before you kill me, how exactly did you do it?"_

_The Aura guardian coolly brushed away a strand of his long, blonde fringe away from his face. "If you must know, my faithful partner can detect the creature you bonded yourself with."_

_Bakura growled again. It sounded odd from his human mouth. He turned round, his blood-red robes swishing against the grassy cliff. He contemplated jumping off the edge, giving himself a quick death and a chance to recover..._

Don't even think about it. Just give me a reason to hurt you.

_He hissed in annoyance. Kyogre had given him enough trouble as it was, without her following him. He turned back round, to see the Aura Guardians face go blank. Evidently he was communing with his partner._

_The Cresselia nodded, and erected a Barrier cube around him. Evidently he was too big a prize to let slip. He sighed._

"_Isn't it a bit late for that? You could have done that ages ago, while you were hunting me through Johto."_

"_The hunt is the best part of the capture," came the reply._

_He nodded. That was true, at least._

"_You are lucky, Thief. The Lord Rayquaza Himself is arriving soon, to judge you. He's going to be bringing your old friend, Groudon…" _

_Bakura grimaced. He had already beaten Groudon before, but evidently that pumped-up fighting machine wanted a rematch… and with the three most powerful Legendary Pokemon to fight at the same time, he wasn't sure he would win._

_A screech came from overhead, announcing the arrival of his nemesis; Rayquaza._

So you caught him… Well done, my Guardian of Aura.

_Bakura sighed. "Spare the pleasantries. Please…"_

_Rayquaza hissed at him. _I would keep quiet if I were you, King of Thieves. You are yet to be judged, and only my honour prevents me from killing you now.

_Bakura smiled cockily. "Such a shame. Last time we fought, I almost killed you… How tempting it must be to kill me now…"_

_Rayquaza looked tempted. Then he shook himself. _No. Do not toy with me, Thief, for it will be worse for you when you are judged.

_An eruption of noise and smoke plumed up from the ground behind the forest through which he had just run. He sighed. [Why does Groudon have to be so dramatic…?]_

_The aforementioned Pokemon roared, sending frightened Pidgey into the sky and shaking the trees._

You have caught him? Good! I will kill him myself!

_Bakura sighed. "Now we're all here, may we finally begin the party?"_

_The Aura Guardian grimaced. "Be silent."_

"_Yes, oh almightily powerful One…"_

_The Aura Guardian clenched his fist, his glove sparking with blue energy. "It would be so easy to kill you now…"_

But you will not. This man is renowned for returning from the grave. He, in effect, cannot be killed. No, I can think of no other punishment than to…

_Bakura zoned out. He sat himself down, plucking a golden object from where it hung on his chest. He looked at it, smoothing his hands over the golden ring that held a triangle shape with a firemark branded on it. Five golden prongs hung down from the bottom, connected with fine gold cord so that they could move as they willed. [The Firebrand Ring… Maybe its power can get me out of this mess I've gotten myself into...]_

Do not bother, King of Thieves. The power of the Firebrand Ring is no match for the power of four of the Legendary Council.

"_Not if I can help it, Cresselia…" Bakura focused on the Ring and his shadow expanded until it was leaching up the invisible walls of the Cube-Barrier. He attempted then to blend in with the shadows… It was a technique he had taught himself, to pass from one shadow to another. Like Teleport, but without the flair. He tried this now, and was extremely shocked when the Barrier stopped him._

I told you. None can escape my Barrier.

_Bakura let the Ring fall onto his chest, and just sat there, looking up at the sky. [This may be the last time I see it… Amanra… I'm sorry…]_

_He shook himself. [Why am I thinking those weak thoughts at a time like this?]_

King of Thieves. We have decided on your punishment. _Rayquaza swung his head to look at him. He grinned. _

"_Good. Because I was getting bored…"_

_The Aura Guardian smiled coolly. "You cannot be killed. When you 'die', you return to the Shadow Realm and grow stronger. Correct?"_

"_Perhaps."_

"_So, we have decided on an alternate punishment – we are going to give you eternity."_

_Bakura burst out laughing. "Eternity!? Hahaha! What a novel concept – to be able to live eternally, never dying, never fading away!"_

You may find that Eternity is not what it seems, not where you're going, at least…_ Kyogre spouted a stream of water up at him from her position in the sea._

"_Even so."_

"_Even so nothing. You are not to be killed – instead you are to be sealed away."_

_Bakura raised an eyebrow. "Sealed away?"_

_The Aura guardian nodded, his spiked, tricolored hair swishing. "Within the Ring you bear upon your chest."_

"_This?" Bakura lifted the Ring, and it dangled from his hand, catching the weak light. He felt apprehensive… almost scared. "Fine. But doing that will increase my power. This artefact was made from the very shadows themselves…"_

"_I am aware of that." The Aura Guardian clenched his fists again, his blue channelling gloves sparking with Aura. _

_Rayquaza sighed, a raspy huff that blew back Bakura's hair. Bakura wrinkled his nose. _Your full punishment will be this: You will be sealed within the Ring that you bear, until another White-Haired One is borne with the Power that you bear – to change into one of us. You must learn from him compassion, mercy and trust, and only then will your sentence end.

"_White-Haired One?"_

Albino. Call them what you will.

_Bakura was outraged. "I am no albino. I clearly have crimson eyes, not pink."_

It makes little difference.

"_Humph."_

_Rayquaza hissed as his markings began to glow bright gold. A similar red glow came from behind as Kyogre began to use her power, and a deeper, blood-red glow came from Groudon. Cresselia glowed a pale white._

_The Aura Guardian grunted as he began to absorb the power of the four Legendaries, orbs of blue increasing in size in his palms._

"_Before I go… May I at least have your name?"_

"_What?" The Aura Guardian almost lost concentration, shocked as he was by Bakuras polite enquiry._

"_Your name. So that I may curse your very existence when… whatever happens, happens."_

_The Aura Guardian huffed, the power in his hands almost too much to contain. The Cresselia looked at him, alarmed. _That is enough power! Any more could end up with you being sealed too…

_The Aura Guardian grunted in pain. His pendant – a pyramid-shaped golden object, from the same set as the Ring - began to glow as he funnelled energy into it._

"_That is the... main idea…"_

No!

"_Yes… After all… Who will there be to make sure he carries out his… punishment… Argh!"_

_The UmbraMark Puzzle glowed once, and flashed. In that instant, the Aura Guardian let out his power in one brief burst – straight at Bakura._

"_My name… is ATEM!"_

_Bakura screamed as pain blossomed over his body. Then the darkness claimed him. Across from him, Atem fainted too. _

No…_ was the last thing he heard, a lament from a weeping Cresselia._

_Golden light spread across the sky as the sun rose._

* * *

_(AN: So... Atem's been introduced, Bakura's sealed away... Check._

_Ryou and Seto up next!_

_Review... Please...)_


	2. The next generation

Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you:

**Thief King... Ninetails?**

Chapter One: The next generation.

* * *

_Bakura woke, groggily. He had the headache of a century, and as he raised his hands to cradle his head, something clinked._

_He looked around him, puzzled. He seemed to be a small room, with black fog coating the floor and glyphs carved into the walls. There was a solitary door at the far end, and he started towards it._

_Before he got halfway across the room, something went taut and tugged him back. _

"_What..?"_

_He looked at his wrists. Where there should be golden wristbands, there were black manacles, connected to long black chains._

"_What!?"_

_He tugged at the chains. The were connected to the wall, and stretched only long enough for him to touch the two walls either side of him. There was no way that he could reach the door and get out of there like this._

_So, he did the most natural thing – He shifted to his alternative form, Shadow Ninetails._

_Or, he tried to._

_In fact, heat surged through the manacles, burning him and interrupting the transformation._

_Bakura now realized where he was. "This is… The Ring…" He frowned. "So. I am sealed away inside this blasted Ring, chained up so I can't leave, presumably in a state of transit between two states."_

_He remembered what Rayquaza had said to him. _**You must learn from him compassion, mercy and trust, and only then will your sentence end.**

"_A load of Tauros-crap, in my opinion. How am I supposed to learn compassion here?"_

_He shook his head and sat with his back against the wall, closing his eyes._

"Oy."

"Uh…"

"OY!"

Ryou woke up. Sat on his chest was a large orange Raichu.

"What is it, Seth…"

The Raichu, named Seth, jumped off Ryous chest and frowned. "Sir Seto wants you. Now."

Ryou groaned. "Why now?"

"New TM to test. Get goin'."

Ryou waited until Seth had left the room, and groaned, rolling off his small bed. _[[How did I end up like this…?]]_

He remembered his first day here, and the events before…

**[FLASHBACK] **

"Get out!"

His father's drunken tones pierced the air as he slammed the door behind Ryou. Ryou sobbed slightly, his soft brown eyes tearful and hurt. His father had seen him change, and had immediately assumed the worst.

You see, Ryou had an innate ability – He could change his form at will, into a Shiny Vulpix. He had no idea how or why; he had had this ability since birth.

Anyway, his superstitious father had immediately assumed he was cursed, and cast him out in a drunken rage. Now all that Ryou had was the clothes on his back and a small bag of valued possessions.

He sighed. His father regularly kicked him out of the house, but something he had said made him realize that he was serious. Ryou wasn't going back there.

He walked away from the house that he would never walk into again.

_Two days later…_

Ryou realized that it had been a bad idea.

He had about three hundred dollars, and some assorted change. That was hardly enough for a Pokéball and a potion – the essential tools of a new Trainer.

He had been scavenging food in his Vulpix form – _[[These are the depths I've sunk to… It's worse than stealing!]]_

Just then, he noticed a notice in the window of a newsagents.

_**Make $$$ in your spare time!**_

_**Bring your Pokémon to the KaibaCorp building, and submit them to TM testing! **_

_**Apply in the KC building in Celadon City. Your Pokémon must be at least level 20 or higher.**_

_[[TM testing… Well, I _am_ a Pokémon, so…]]_

He walked to Celadon. It took him another four hours, but he managed it as a Vulpix, tagging along with a pack.

Still in Vulpix form, he nudged open the door to the KC building. It didn't take long for someone to spot the rare Shiny Vulpix sitting obediently on the floor.

They tried shooing him away – no go.

They tried catching him – no go. Pokéballs didn't seem to affect him.

So, they did the most obvious thing… They took it to their superiors.

"What the hell is going on!? Why was I disturbed from an extremely important shareholders meeting!?"

Seto Kaiba himself, the teenage CEO of the highest rated Trainer essential manufacturing company in the known Pokémon world, strode into the lobby. Ryou presumed this was the top dog, and shifted forms.

A bright light enveloped his body, and he stood there in the center of the lobby, a scruffy teenage boy with long white hair and brown eyes.

Seto stood there, slightly shocked.

Ryou strode towards Seto, hand outstretched. "Good evening, uh… sir… I'm here for the TM tester job."

Seto composed himself. "Sorry, but you don't seem to have any Pokémon…" He made this sound like an insult. He did not approve of idiots wasting his time.

"I don't need a Pokémon, sir. I am one." Ryou withdrew his hand. Evidently a handshake was off the menu.

Seto raised an eyebrow. "I saw. Perhaps we should talk somewhere… more private."

Twenty minutes later, In Seto's office. Ryou shifted back to human again. Mr. Kaiba had been asking him to shift back and forth for the past ten minutes, while running odd scanners and hooking him up to machines.

Kaiba was now sat at his desk, chin on his clasped hands. "So. What did you say you could bring to this job?"

"Well, sir…" Ryou thought for a minute. "I can become a Pokémon for an indefinite time, uh; I can understand and speak the Pokémon language, so I can act as an interpreter for any other Pokémon…"

"Uh-hm."

Kaiba stood up, and opened the door. "Well, I'll keep you posted, Bakura. Do you have a definite address?"

"Um… no… I, well, I'm living wild at the moment."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "Well…"

He stuck his head out the door and yelled, "Mokuba!" He gestured Ryou to sit.

Ryou did sit, looking around at the room in more detail. There were seven trophies, each depicting a Charizard, arranged on a shelf on the wall above the desk. On the desk itself were two photos – one depicted Kaiba as a boy, playing chess with a scruffy younger child. The other showed a white Charizard with blue eyes, staring intently at the camera.

He began to fidget – He wasn't used to not doing anything – and Kaiba glared at him. He stopped.

A few minutes later, a young boy – maybe nine or ten – opened the door and walked into the room. "What is it, Seto?"

Kaiba gestured to Ryou. "Meet the new TM tester, Mokuba. Take him to the accommodation floor and give him a room."

Mokuba nodded and gestured to Ryou to follow him.

Ryou looked slightly shocked. "Oh, you don't need to keep me here…"

Mokuba grabbed him by the arm and began to pull him from the room. "TM testing is a full-time job, so Seto prefers to give the testers a room in the building itself. Don't worry – he'll take your expenses out of your wages." Mokuba looked closer at him. "Also… What have you been doing? You look like a wild thing… and you don't have any Pokémon…"

Ryou smiled and looked down at himself. His outfit – a blue-and-white striped t-shirt under an open light blue shirt and light blue jeans – was ripped and grass-stained. His hair looked like a bush and his face was extremely dirty. "It's not that bad, surely…"

"It is. I need to get you some better clothes."

Ryou shrugged. "Okay. Also, about me not having any Pokémon; I _am_ a Pokémon."

Mokuba looked at him incredulously. "Really?" His eyes sparkled.

"Really." The white light enveloped Ryou again, and he shifted into his Vulpix form.

"Wow…" Mokuba reached down and stroked Ryou, who pushed his nose into Mokuba's palm. He whined slightly, and Mokuba stepped back as he shifted back.

"See?"

"Alright, I believe you. Wow…"

Mokuba stopped at a door. "Here you go. It isn't much, but you can stay here."

Ryou stepped into the room.

The room itself was medium-sized, maybe ten paces square. By the wall was a smallish desk, and a wardrobe. On the other side of the room was a bed that looked like it would just about fit him, with a shelf above it.

"Well, I'll leave you to get settled in. Anything you need, just ask. The intercom button's by your bed."

"Thank you, Mr. Mokuba."

"Please, just Mokuba. And you're Bakura, right?"

"Yes. Thank you."

**[END FLASHBACK]**

Ryou dressed. His outfit was identical to what he had been wearing when he arrived; Blue and white striped t-shirt under an open light blue shirt and light blue jeans.

He picked up a hairbrush and attacked his hair, brushing it into its natural spikes running down his back.

"Come on! Hurry up!" Seth nudged the door open again. "He's waiting for you, and, let me tell you, he aint in a good mood."

"I'll bear that in mind." Ryou stepped over the Mouse Pokémon and walked down the corridor, the same route that he had taken every day of the two years he lived here.

He came to a plain steel door, and knocked. It hissed open, and Ryou hesitantly entered the lab.

The lab itself was a blinding white. Equipment including the TM Tester(KCTM) itself lined the walls, and Kaiba stood in the center of the room, arms crossed and back to the door. Ryou was surprised. Usually he was greeted by a technician who gave him his assignment and left.

"You're late."

"Uh… Sorry, sir."

"Before you begin, there's something I want to give you."

"Uh… Sir?"

Kaiba turned round. In his hands was a small package with a note attached. "It arrived in the post for you." He handed it to Ryou, who took it gratefully, and left, tossing "Today's work is on the desk. Don't screw up." Over his shoulder.

Ryou put the package down on the small desk in the corner before turning to the file that held today's assignment.

There were three small disks in the file, each marked with a post-it note. Today's tests were; _Flame Wheel, Shadow Pulse _and _Blast Burn._

_[[Blast Burn? That's the highest powered Fire attack… Why would he waste it on me..?]]_

Ryou shrugged. He was paid to test the TMs, and test them he would.

He picked up the Flame Wheel TM, and slotted it into the Tester(KCTM). Then, he shifted. The machine picked him up on its sensors once he had changed to Vulpix form, and once he stepped into the machine it lowered the Learner device onto his head.

He waited, and then he felt the hollow feeling of forgetfulness as he forgot one of his other moves and learned Flame Wheel.

The Learner hissed slightly as it raised off him and he stumbled out of the machine, shaking his head. His overlong fringe messed itself up again, but he could never keep it straight anyway.

He twitched his ears, hearing someone walk down the passage outside. It sounded like Mokuba's small footsteps. He grinned a foxy grin as his friend opened the door.

"Hello, Mokuba!" He said. To Mokuba it sounded like "Vulp! Vul!" But he had learned a little of Ryous language and he greeted Ryou by kneeling down and petting his head.

"How's it going?"

"Fine, I'm just testing Flame Wheel," he said, shifting halfway through the sentence.

"Great. I brought you breakfast."

Ryou looked at the plate that Mokuba was holding. It held a small omelet.

"Thanks, Mokuba. Why today?"

"Um… no reason…" Mokuba looked shiftily at the small package on the desk.

"Oh, I see. You want to see what I got, right?"

Mokuba flushed. "Am I really that transparent…"

"Yup. It's OK though. I was going to open it once I'd finished testing Flame Wheel."

Mokuba grinned and sat down, waiting while Ryou shifted again and snaffled the omelet, before turning to the training dummy on the other side of the room.

"Flame Wheel!"

Ryou ran at the dummy, at the last second his body ignited and he curled up into a spinning ball, hitting the dummy point-blank.

Mokuba looked at the readout next to it. "Thirty-four percent!" He said.

Ryou noted down this number. "So Flame Wheel still needs some work… It's supposed to have a forty-five percent hit when it's learnt naturally."

Mokuba grinned. "Now will you…"

Ryou trotted back across the room, shifting in mid-step. "Yes. I'll open it."

He picked up the package. His sixth sense went on full alert as he held it in his hand.

Slowly, he began to unwrap the brown paper it was wrapped in, and the layers of bubble wrap and tissue paper.

Finally, it sat on the desk – a ring of gold, with a triangle shape in the center. It had five conical objects attached to it that tinkled as he picked it up. A brown rope dangled from a smaller loop at what Ryou presumed was the top.

Mokuba looked at it, eyes wide. He held out his hand to touch it, and then remembered his manners. "Can I?"

Ryou nodded, and Mokuba traced the fire-mark in the center of the triangle.

Ryou let Mokuba hold it as he picked up the letter.

_**Bakura.**_

_**You have reached your destination.**_

_**Remember your objective, and treat him with care.**_

_**Ryou.**_

_**This is the Firebrand Ring. Wear it always, and treat him with trust and kindness.**_

_**Both of you have a harrowing journey ahead.**_

_**You must work together to achieve your goal.**_

Ryou raised an eyebrow. The letter made no sense whatsoever, and he folded it up and stowed it in his shirt pocket.

He gently took the Ring off of his friend, and placed it around his neck, securing the rope.

_Fire. Flames. Fury._

_A giant flaming bird, in the sky, torching his village._

_He ran in fear as two more swooped down from the sky, destroying the land and forest nearby._

"Ryou?"

"Uh…"

"Ryou… Wake up, please…"

Ryou opened his eyes. Mokuba's worried face hovered above his own, and withdrew as he sat up.

"You fainted… Ryou, are you alright?"

Ryou's hands went to the Ring around his neck. "Yes… Yes, I'm fine. It must be some sort of reaction to the TM."

He stood up, and the world spun. He staggered and clutched at the desk for support.

_Death…_

_His sister, being herded form the village. His mother, too. His father, refusing to go…_

_A stream of ice flashing down from the sky, hitting his father, freezing him, kills him instantly._

_He had to run, to get away, to survive…_

"Ryou… You need to go back to your room. You're clearly sick."

He nodded, and shifted. His four-legged Vulpix form would be steadier on its feet.

But as he shifted, the light stayed longer than it usually did. He shrunk down to his Vulpix form, but then grew to three times its size. His three tails each splitinto three, and grew longer, straightening out.

The fur at his neck grew, creating a ruff that was longer at the front. His curled fringe straightened out and grew longer, now cascading down his neck and spiking at the front. His ears sharpened. His vision improved. He felt… Powerful.

He tottered, and this time he blacked out and stayed unconscious.

_It had been five thousand years. Bakura had descended into a comatose, half-alive state._

_So he didn't notice when a sudden warm wind blew through the chamber._

_He did, however, notice when his manacles snapped and the chain disintegrated, waking him from his slumber._

_He jolted awake, his years of training and thievery making him wide-awake. He looked around him, and scratched his scar._

"_It seems Phase Two has begun. Well, Rayquaza – it took you long enough."_

_He slowly crossed the room to the door. His limbs had become weak, and he circuited the room first, to get the feeling back in his legs._

_Then, he opened the door. A bright light streamed out and enveloped him…_

* * *

**_(AN: Aaaand... Cut. Sorry, guys. Cliffhanger ending._**

**_Tell ya what. When I get... six reviews, I'll post the next chapter. ^^_**

**_You know what to do... PUSH THE BUTTON!!!_**

**_I'll be waiting...)_**


	3. Lost Memories

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you..._

_**Thief King... Ninetails?**_

_Chapter Two - Lost memories._

* * *

_The pain, will it never end?_

_The spirit of the Aura Guardian, once called Atem, woke up groggily. He looked around, brushing his bangs back from his face._

_He was in a large room, with one door. The walls of the room were covered in Unown-marks; the word 'Yami' spelled out endless times._

_He felt oddly empty. He knew he was here for a reason – wherever 'here' was – but he couldn't remember anything; not his past, or his parents, or even his name._

_He restlessly scanned the walls of the chamber. The Unown-letters seemed to be spelling out something else as he watched them._

_**You-must-find-him**_

"_Find who?"__ He said, frustrated._

_**B-a-k-u-r-a**_

"_Bakura?"_

_The letters reformed into the endless spelling of 'Yami'. He punched the wall, even more frustrated._

_Then, he looked up._

_The room he stood in wasn't the only part of this place. It was only one part of a labyrinth, of doors and staircases and unpredictable dimensions._

_A staircase formed in front of him, and he sighed. "Maybe I can find some answers in there," he said to himself, and ascended into the maze._

_The Unown watched him go.

* * *

_

"Yugi! Come here, please!"

Professor Mutoh, the leading expert on Pokémon in the Takato Region, had finally found what he was looking for – the Umbra Puzzle Box, in the ancient Silver Ruins.

The inscription on the box – in Unown-runes – read like this:

_**The power of the Shadows will grant the fondest wish of He who solves the UmbraMark Puzzle.**_

_**But with a wish comes a curse – to unite the powers of Shadow and Aura.**_

_**Yami and Hikari must bond together to defeat the powers of evil fire that stand in their way.**_

But his adventuring days were over. He fondly looked across the room to a screened-off area, where his faithful partner Lucario was pounding away at a punching-bag. Most likely she was attempting to break it again, for the third time this week. He smiled.

His grandson was nearing the age where he could set out on his own Pokémon journey. Perhaps he could try to solve the UmbraMark Puzzle…

What sounded like a herd of elephants thundered down the stairs from the living area above, and Professor Mutoh winced. _Why that boy has to be so loud,_ he thought to himself.

Yugi entered the lab, smiling. The twelve-year-old boy was full of energy, as he hopped from one foot to the other. "Yes, Grandpa?"

Professor Mutoh grinned, and beckoned his grandson closer. "Yugi, I have something for you."

"What is it?" Yugi bounced over to his grandpa, beaming.

The Professor opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a small golden box inscribed with Unown-Runes. He held it out to his grandson gravely. "This is the Umbra Puzzle. It was owned by an ancient Aura Guardian, and I found it in the Silver Ruins."

"The Silver Ruins?" Yugi looked at his grandpa, wide-eyed.

"Yes. Keep it safe, Yugi…"

Yugi took the small, gold box from his grandpa. "Thanks, Grandpa. I'll look after it… I promise!" He turned and ran back the way he had come, most likely to try and solve it.

Professor Mutoh smiled.

* * *

_~~Four years later~~_

"Yugi! Yugiiii!"

Professor Mutoh stood at the bottom of the staircase, shouting up to his grandson. There was a thump as – most likely – his sixteen-year old grandson fell out of bed.

He sighed. Yugi had probably been tinkering with the Puzzle again last night and stayed up late again… He didn't blame him. When he himself was young, he had stayed late to complete extra-hard puzzle boards and chess mysteries.

Yugi ran downstairs clutching his backpack and the small golden box that held the pieces of the UmbraMark Puzzle. "Sorry, Grandpa, I overslept…"

"Messing with the Puzzle again, were you?"

"You bet! I think I'm really close… I've got the base sorted, just the point to go!"

"Good luck with that." Professor Mutoh sounded extremely cheerful. He headed over to the kitchenette part of the lab and began to fix breakfast. His Lucario stood in the corner of the room, eyes shut and tassels flared. It opened one eye lazily as it sensed Yugi watching it, and winked.

Yugi smiled at it. He had never been really well liked by the Lucario – it was bonded to his grandpa, after all – but it seemed a lot friendlier to him lately.

He then noticed the clock on the wall. "Oh, damn! I'm going to be late!" He grabbed a couple of slices of toast from the plate his grandpa was holding and rushed out of the room.

Professor Mutoh sighed. "Oh, that boy…"

Yugi literally ran all the way to the Trainers School. That was, until he was stopped by someone a lot bigger than him.

Said person lifted him up by the front of his jacket, to eye level. He looked into the brown eyes of Joey Wheeler.

"Um… hi, Joey…"

"Hey, Yugi, you're heavier than yesterday. What've you got in dat bag? Huh?"

"Uh… Nothing…"

Joey evidently didn't believe it. He dropped Yugi, pulling the yellow schoolbag off his back and riffling through it. "Aha!"

Yugi picked himself up from the ground, looking ashamed. Joey was now pulling out his various games, including Pop-up Pirate, his multiple packs of cards and… "No! Leave that alone!"

Joey held up the small golden box and peered at the Unown-Runes quizzically. "What's this, then?"

"Please," Yugi pleaded, "Don't break it! You can look inside, but don't harm it; it's very precious to me!"

Joey held the puzzle box up over Yugi's head and peeked inside. "Hey, it's… just a load of puzzle pieces."

"So why don't you give it back to him?"

Joey jumped, and turned around. "Oh! Uh… Téa… Eheh…"

"And what did I tell you about bullying people smaller than you? Leave Yugi alone."

Yugi looked up at Téa. "Um… He's got my Puzzle…"

Téa stalked over to Joey, holding out her hand. "Give."

Joey tossed the puzzle box to Téa and fled.

Yugi began to pick up his games. Téa leaned down to help him, handing him the Puzzle back. "Here you go, Yugi."

"Thanks, Téa." Yugi zipped his bag back up and smiled up at his friend.

"What's in that box, anyway?" Téa walked through the gates to the school, and Yugi followed her.

"It's my most precious possession. It's called the UmbraMark Puzzle, and it grants the wish of the person who solves it!"

Téa smiled. "That's great! Can I see?"

Yugi dived into his bag to retrieve the Puzzle, and slid off the lid to reveal the golden pieces. Téa picked one out of the box. "Wow… It's so beautiful… They glitter like gold…"

Just then, the bell rang for the start of lessons. Yugi picked his feet up and ran into the school, offloading his bag at his locker and picking up the Pokéball that contained the Pokémon he borrowed from the school – A rather temperamental Abra.

* * *

_Meanwhile…_

Joey walked down the passageway towards his classroom, muttering to himself. "Who's bullying Yugi? I'm not…"

"You're a bully?"

Joey whirled round, and came face to face with the schools hall monitor and bully eradicator, Ushio. His Pokémon – a large Growlithe with a mean temper – stood by him, growling.

"Uh! No, no… I'm not a bully…"

"You had better not be. Bullying is wrong, I'd hate to have to enforce the rules on you, Wheeler." Ushio clapped Joey on the shoulder and walked away. The growlithe shot him a dirty look and followed.

* * *

_At the end of the day…_

Predictably, Yugi had had a particularly bad day. His Abra didn't listen to a word he said to it, he was picked on by the older grade and he'd not got on with the puzzle like he'd said he would.

So, when Ushio, the school enforcer, clapped him on the back, he stumbled forward and almost fell, he was so caught up in his thoughts.

"Hey, Yugi."

"Oh, Ushio…"

"Yugi, I saw what happened this morning. "

"What… Oh, with Joey? He's just messing around, Ushio…"

"Well, I want you to know that you won't be bothered by him again. I'll see to it – I'll be your personal bodyguard!"

Yugi nodded, thinking, _What a weirdo! _"Um.. I've got to go…"

"Of course. I'll see you tomorrow, Yugi."

Yugi ran out of the gates, heading out of town to his grandpa's lab.

That night, Yugi sat at his desk, one again working on the UmbraMark Puzzle.

_Click…_

"But Joey is my friend… Ushio wouldn't hurt him, would he?"

_Click…_

"Does this piece go here?"

_Click…_

_Yugi…_

"Huh? What was that?" Yugi strained his ears, but heard nothing. "Hmm. Maybe my ears are playing tricks on me… I'd better go to bed."

* * *

_The next day…_

"Maybe I'll do some more on the Puzzle…" Yugi sat at his desk, riffling through his schoolbag. He pulled out his puzzle box, looking at it.

"Yugi?" Ushio stuck his head around the door. "Could you come with me?"

"Uh… Sure, Ushio." Yugi put his box away and stood up, to go with Ushio.

Ushio led him outside, around the school. "Here." He stood aside to reveal – "No!"

Joey and his friend Tristan were in a heap, badly punched up, bruised and bleeding. Yugi looked at them both, horrified. "Ushio! How could you do this? They're my friends!"

Ushio raised a thick eyebrow. "Your friends? They make your life a misery! Nows your chance! Hit them! Kick them!" To emphasise his point, he slammed a foot into Joeys side, Joey grunted in pain.

"No! Leave them alone!" Yugi stood in front of his 'friends', arms outstretched, protecting them.

"Whatever, Yugi. Anyway, there's the matter of my fee…"

"Your fee!?"

"My bodyguard fee – five hundred Poké!"

"What!? I can't afford that!"

"You'd better." Ushio picked up Yugi by his lapels, grinning. "Otherwise – well, here's a taste of what'll happen!"

The next five minutes was torture. Yugi was brutally beaten up, to within an inch of his life. At the end, he could barely stand, his face bruised and beaten.

_At least Joey and Tristan are alright…_

"So you bring the money, 'k? Or you'll get worse than that…"

When he dragged himself into class later, the teacher sent him home with a sick-note. "You can't stay here like this," he had said.

So, Yugi was home. Luckily, he'd slipped past his grandpa, but the Lucario had noticed him.

So, he'd had to explain about Ushio.

It hadn't gone down well.

He sat now, fiddling with the Puzzle, holding an icepack to a particularly bad bruise on his cheek.

_Hey… It's easier today…_

_So that piece goes there…_

_And… I see! This piece rotates clockwise so that…_

He fumbled in his box for the last piece, and slotted it in.

_It's finished… I finally finished it! Yes! _Yugi let out a whoop of joy.

And then…

* * *

_Yami – he had called himself Yami, because that was what was written on the walls – opened yet another door. Behind this one, as all the rest, was about a dozen other doors. _

_And, then…_

_He felt drawn to another door. This time, it was different – it was engraved with a picture of the crescent moon, and it opened as he approached it._

_He stepped through. _

_A bright light enveloped him…_

* * *

So? How was it?

R&R, please! I need at least two more reviews to advance!


	4. Bakura, Unleashed!

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you,_

_**Thief King... ** **Ninetails?**_

_Chapter Three: Bakura, unleashed!_

* * *

"But I want to go and see him!"

Mokuba ran at the door to his friend's quarters, hammering with his fists. Seto caught hold of him and turned him round.

"Mokuba. That may not be _your_ Ryou. This has never happened before – there was no precedent – but everyone knows that the personality of a Pokémon changes when they evolve. Added to that, he's a Ninetails – they're usually quite malevolent, even the good ones – so don't go near him until he's made himself known."

Mokuba looked up at his brother. "But Seto-"

"No buts. Promise me you won't see him until he sees you." Seto crouched down and looked his brother in the deep brown eyes. "This is for your safety. Please, listen to me."

Mokuba looked at his brother, tears in his eyes. "But Seto…. He's my friend!"

"I know."

Seto stood, turned and walked away. _If he's unfit for work I'll just fire him and find another TM tester._

Mokuba stood looking at the door. Ryou had had a keypad installed halfway through his second year, and Mokuba didn't know the passcode. He wasn't going to give up, though…

He rushed off to find a techie. He'd help.

_Bakura stood in a short corridor. One end of it was obscured in a blaze of white light, and the other end narrowed to a point. _

_What interested him, though, was the second door. Behind him was _his_ door, with the Fire-mark engraved on it, but the other was plain and wooden._

_His hand closed on the handle and turned. The door opened with a silent swish and he entered._

_The room itself wasn't anything to brag about. It was plain and uninteresting, with a desk in one corner and a large table with several chess sets on it. He picked up one of the pieces – a miniature Vulpix. Cute. The floor, also – cluttered with jumbled pieces from different games, evil creatures mixed with glorious heroes. In the center of the table stood a small lead figure – The boy himself, wearing clothes that would have been from his own age. It held a staff – Perhaps some symbolic rubbish._

_Then, he noticed the boy, slumped in a corner. Bakura stood by the chess table, examining the sixteen-year old boy who could be a reincarnation of himself._

_He walked over to him. Evidently, he was asleep or unconscious, his eyelids fluttering wildly as he dreamed. Bakura reached down and touched the boy, as if to shake him awake – then stiffened as a torrent of memories flowed into his mind._

His father… Addicted to alcohol and the particular berry that caused hallucination and death.

His mother… Dead. Killed by a rampaging Rhyperior when he was eight years old.

His sister… Dead.

He had watched them die… Had seen blood stain his sister's hair… Had held her as with her last breath she said 'Goodbye'…

_He let go and turned away. "Just a coincidence. Nothing more."_

_He left the room, returned to the corridor. He looked long and hard at the bright light that covered the corridor ahead…_

_And stepped into it._

He opened his eyes. He was lying in a soft white bed… The ceiling above him was a light blue, and patterned with white lilies.

He stood up, clutching his head, which was pounding. He staggered into a desk and swore, a cascade of carefully stacked papers falling off and littering the floor.

"Ryou?" A muffled voice sounded outside the door, and he jumped and swore again. "Ryou? Are you alright?"

Bakura looked around. Obviously, he was supposed to be 'Ryou', since no-one else was in the room.

"I'm fine," he said, his gruff voice filling the room.

There was a beep as the door slowly opened. A short, black-haired boy stood there, flanked by two white-coated people.

His heart raced, as he accessed 'his' new memories to find out who this boy was.

_Mokuba… Brother of the CEO of KaibaCorp, which is the biggest and most popular Poké-appliance – what the hell? – maker in the Pokémon world._

_Heh heh heh. I think – since I appear to have fully returned to this world – it's time to kick up a fuss, and show the world that I've returned…_

Bakura looked down at the boy. He was a small morsel, but he would have to do…

Mokuba looked up at his friend, searching for the warmth and compassion in those brown eyes, which reassured him always.

It wasn't there. The Ryou that stood in front of him looked down at him with a cold indifference, and an almost hungry look in his eyes. He shivered slightly. _Maybe Seto was right…_

Without warning, Bakura shifted. He changed forms; to the form he loved so much – Shadow Ninetails.

He lifted his jet-black head and growled at the boy, who backed away.

"Ryou… Ryou! It's me! It's Mokuba!"

Bakura grinned a wolfish grin, and with a flick of his purple-tipped tails he pounced.

The wind was knocked out of Mokuba by the heavy fox-Pokémon landing on his chest. He wheezed, and attempted to shove the heavy animal off him.

Bakura bared his teeth at the boy, giving him an impressive view of his long, yellow canines. He growled and snapped his jaws, a drop of saliva hitting the boys face.

Mokuba was terrified now. He attempted, again, to get up, maybe this was a dream, please, this isn't happening…

The white-coated techies stood there, stone-still. In fact, they were… Bakura had used the powers of the Ring to temporarily stop time, so that the priests – for that was what he thought they were – couldn't interfere.

Bakura grinned a wolfish grin and lowered his head, his jaws closing on the boy's throat. With a savage growl, he tore upwards.

The warm, coppery taste of human blood filled his mouth after so long. He moaned slightly, letting the red liquid flow over his tongue.

"Mokuba?"

Another voice. Bakura abandoned his victim and slunk back, knowing that the Ring kept them hidden, but not sure…

"You two. Where is my brother?" Another person – white-coated too, but in a different way, an odd belt at his hip with six small red balls concealed there.

"Um… Sorry, Mister Kaiba, he was here a second ago… Perhaps he ran off."

"Damn." The man – Kaiba, presumably – turned to leave.

Then, the Ring failed.

Bakura's first thought was _Damn! I've been out of practise for so long… _Then it was _Crap!_

He bolted out the door, leaving his kill behind.

Seto stood in the doorway of the room he had given to Bakura, horrified, shocked and sickened by the scene before him.

He heard a voice shouting his brother's name. Maybe it was him – he didn't know.

He stumbled forwards, picking up the lifeless body of his little brother and cradling it in his arms.

The two techies ran after Bakura, who had fled the scene.

He began to sob into his brothers black hair, his sapphire eyes overflowing as the blood of the innocent stained his coat.

He laid Mokuba on the bed, stroking his hair back from his still face.

"I'll be back," he promised.

Then, he ran from the room, pulling two Pokéballs from his belt.

"Go, Kisara and BrightWing!!"

The two Pokémon burst from their balls – two of his three White Charizards, a dying breed that Seto had saved.

Kisara – the female – looked back at him and huffed quizzically.

"A black Ninetails is loose in the building. Find him, and bring him to me. Don't use your fire – that'll just make him stronger."

BrightWing nodded, and the two dragons flew down the wide corridor.

Seto pulled another Pokéball from his belt. "Seth! I need you!"

Seth – the Shiny Raichu – burst out and stood, ready for battle.

"Stay close to me. We're hunting for Bakura."

Seth nodded, and Seto began to search.

Bakura raced down a passage, avoiding startled priests and several Pokémon that attempted to block his way. He stopped in an alcove to catch his breath.

_Silver walls, hard floors, Priests… This must be a new temple of a new God Pokémon! I need to get out…_

He padded out the alcove, continuing his frenzied run. He was heading downwards now, he could feel it, and soon he came to a flight of stairs that he ran down, into a large lobby.

One wall was a giant window, looking out into a city – but no city that Bakura could ever have imagined. He headed for the glass door…

Massive metal shutters hissed down the glass, slamming into the floor. He looked around, but more screens were slamming closed around the lobby. He was trapped.

Seto strolled casually down the stairs, Seth running at his side. He noticed Kisara and Bright hanging from the steel rafters at the top of the lobby, and nodded to them. They let go and landed with a thump.

"Give up, Bakura. You've got nowhere to hide."

Bakura bared his teeth.

"Oh, please. Why don't you return to your original form?"

Bakura growled, but did as he was bidden, phasing out of Ninetails-form and standing there, glaring daggers at the person ho had trapped him.

Kaiba smiled. "Good. Now. You have thirty seconds to explain why you killed my brother, and then I'm going to kill you." His eyes were hard – like two chips of sapphire – and Bakura didn't doubt that he would do as he had said.

Bakura grinned. "For fun."

Kaiba shivered. That voice – so unlike the Ryou he'd employed – sent shivers down his spine, and set his sixth sense through the roof.

"Fun? FUN? That's your answer? You… murderer! You killed an innocent boy – your friend, even! For fun?"

"Yep."

Kaiba was speechless. Then, he composed himself. "Kisara. Bright. Seth. Show no mercy."

The two Charizards and a Raichu advanced, the Charizards growling, the Raichu sparking.

"I always knew I was right about you," taunted Seth. "I knew you'd go bad as soon as you evolved – Didn't I say so, Kisara?"

"You did. I'm going to enjoy ripping you apart, filthy Hybrid."

Bakura grinned, and shifted back to Ninetails form to retaliate.

"Kisara… Any chance related to Kisara the White Charizard, partner of Seth the High Priest of Takato?"

Kisara stopped. "Yes… She was my ancestor… Why?"

Bakura grinned. "I killed her." Then, he was a black blur as he attacked, fastening his jaws around Bright's throat.

Seth frowned and called down a Thunderbolt, using his body as a conductor to ferociously zap Bakura, again and again, until he let go and slid across the floor, sides heaving.

He grinned. The FireBrand Ring – which never changed, like his clothes did, it always remained around his neck – glowed a bright gold, and he stepped back into a conveniently placed shadow.

Then, he melted into the shadow, and disappeared.

Seto stood there amid the ruins of the lobby of his building, sorrow etched across his face.

"I'll find you… Even if I have to chase you across the Regions, I'll find you, Bakura!"

* * *

Ehe... Super special Awesome plot twist!

Bakura killing Mokuba... How about that, hmmm?

But, it provides an incentive for Kaiba to go to the Takato Region...

Don't like it? Review!


	5. Illusion of Greed

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you..._

**_Thief King... Ninetails?_**

_Chapter four: Illusion of Greed_

_Yami stepped out into a short corridor. The door with the UmbraMark clicked shut behind him._

_He looked around. This place was familiar, somehow… One end narrowed to a point, and the other end obscured by a bright light._

_There was another door in front of him. It was ajar, and through it he could see a small, plain room, cluttered with various toys. An innocent room, then - No darkness had tainted this boy's soul._

_The child himself was slumped in the corner of the room. Yami looked down at his face; his own face. The boy was almost a reincarnation of himself; right down to the tricolored hair and blonde bangs._

_He turned and exited the room. If he was truly within the boy's soul then the shock of waking him would kill him._

_He looked to the light at the other end of the corridor, and walked towards it. _

"_This is it…"_

His first impression was of darkness. The room he stood in was lit by only a single lamp, angled onto the small desk.

He held the UmbraMark Puzzle in his hands. There was a piece of rope on the desk – he looped it round the ring at the top and tied it round his neck. It felt… right, hanging there.

The UmbraMark – the mark of the crescent moon, which was engraved upon the Puzzle – began to glow. Shadows issued forth from it, forming into recognisable shapes – Black shadows of Pokémon with gleaming red eyes.

They paced around him – Tyranitar, Ninetails, Houndoom, Honchkrow, Absol, Mightyena – Growling, glaring at him, ready to strike.

And then – they did. The Absol pounced, and Yami threw his hands up…

The UmbraMark Puzzle flashed gold, once. The six shadows screamed, before being pulled back into the Puzzle and being locked away.

Yami staggered back against the desk. His head pounded, like nails were being driven through it. Images were forcing its way into his head… The most recent memories of the boy he now inhabited.

He frowned. This _Ushio_ character… He would have to pay.

"Lucario."

The Lucario – faithful friend of Solomon Mutoh – opened her eyes. She had slept on her feet – she always did – and she saw her partner's grandson – Yugi – in front of her.

But this wasn't Yugi. Yugi's aura was a gold colour, and this boy's aura was red – Blazing red. Only one type of Human had that Aura – an Aura Guardian.

Lucario narrowed her eyes. The UmbraMark Puzzle – The boy had completed it, then. The legend had been passed down through the Aura Pokémon…

"_Lord. What may I do to help?"_

_That little squirt Yugi rang and told me to come here… Heh Heh._

Ushio walked into the courtyard of the Trainer School. His Pokémon – Growlithe –walked by his side.

"Ushio. I'm glad you came."

Ushio turned round. Yugi sat there, upon the fence, looking as if he owned the place. But he was different… He exuded an air of confidence that Ushio couldn't place. One hand stroked a pyramid-shaped pendant that hung round his neck.

"Yugi. I hope you brought the money…"

Yugi chuckled. "I brought it… Oh…" His hand dipped into his pocket and brought out a wedge of notes. "It seems I brought a little too much… one thousand Poké, I think…"

"One _thousand_ Poké?"

"Yes. But, here… Your fee."

"No, wait! I'll uh… I'll…"

"You want it all?"

"Yes!"

Yugi chuckled again. "Fine. I'll battle you for it."

Ushio looked down at his partner Growlithe. "You up for a fight?"

It growled at Yugi.

"That's my answer! I accept your challenge!"

"Very well." Yugi grinned. "The Pokémon I choose is… Lucario!"

Lucario detached herself from the shadow she had hidden herself in. She looked at the Aura Guardian – was this right, hurting an innocent Pokémon to gain revenge on its master?

"Go on."

Lucario took up a fighting stance. Her opponent – a Growlithe, most likely only level ten, or twelve – fearfully looked up at her.

Ushio stepped back. "A… A Lucario!? Play fair!"

Yugi smiled a cold smile. "Whoever said I was going to play fair? Lucario! Aura Sphere!"

Lucario grimaced. _"I'm sorry…" _She prepared her Aura Sphere, and blasted the Growlithe off the round. It landed on its side, twitching.

Yami walked up to Ushio, grinning. The UmbraMark Puzzle began to glow, the Mark of the Crescent Moon appearing on his forehead. "And now, Ushio… The bully who pretends to protect, then homes in for the kill… The Door to Darkness has been opened, Ushio… Now, your Penalty Game! Illusion of Greed!"

He felt the power of the Shadows surge through him and he directed it all at Ushio, creating a warped illusion which overruled the usual vision of Ushio's life.

Then, he turned his back and walked away. The Lucario cast a glance at the downed Growlithe, then walked with him.

* * *

Sh-Sh-Short!

But, don't worry. Next chapter will be longer.

Review, please! Tell me what you think!


	6. Kaguya?

Whoop-whoop-whoop! OC alert!

Yup, this is for you, Wolfie. ^^

IceDragon1095 - Um... The previous chapter was supposed to be serious... how was it funny?

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon combine to bring you..._

_**Thief King Ninetails**_

_Chapter Five: Kaguya?_

* * *

_Heh Heh. He's set out on the hunt. Such a shame that he uses these 'machines' instead of a hunting Pokémon… But he'll never find me. Whenever his – I access my hosts memories again – 'Helicopter' draws near, I just melt into the Shadows._

_I only move at night. Of course, since _I_ have no need to eat and sleep, this body is wearing down fast…_

_There it is - the entrance to a city. Risky move – Sir Seto may have people watching out for him._

_But the city has a harbour, and in that harbour is a boat – the SS. Anne. If I can somehow leap aboard the ship before it sails, they won't suspect anything and this body can get a rest. Not to mention there'll be a greater opportunity to escape the hunt and maybe turn the hunter into the hunted._

_I dive out of the leaf cover and sprint towards the harbour. A deckhand attempts to bar my way as I use the last of my energy to leap aboard the ship just before the hatch closes._

_I slink into the darkest corner – and sleep._

"_Awww… Who do you belong to, then?"_

A voice in the darkness roused Ryou from a long sleep. I mean a really long sleep. The touch of a hand ruffling his fur brought him fully out of his stupor and he jumped to his feet, backing away from whoever was touching him. "Mokuba?"

He felt heavier than usual. He turned around, trying to discern what had happened to him. Then he realised.

_[[I've changed colour… Oh, my…]]_

His fur was silver, and the tips of his unusually long tails were light blue. His fringe flopped into his face and he ran a paw over his head, discovering pointed ears and longer fur cascading down his neck.

Then, it twigged. _[[I've not only changed colour… I've… Evolved…]]_

He flopped down, and suddenly the voice sounded again: _"What's wrong, boy?"_

He jumped, slightly surprised, and then turned to look at the person who'd woken him. Her long blonde hair was swept back over her shoulder and tied at her neck. Her rosy eyes looked at him kindly, and her scruffy blue and pink outfit and single Pokéball on her belt showed she was a Trainer.

He stepped back. He had no wish to be caught.

"It's OK; I'm not going to hurt you." The human smiled kindly, and knelt down to ruffle his fur. He backed away further.

The girl shook her head. She stood up and turned around, walking into a room. She didn't close the door, but left it slightly open, easy to push open.

Ryou lay back down. He had no idea where he was – his last memory was that odd vision of the three Legendary Birds…

And this Ring. He'd been sent it, and the minute he'd put it on he'd evolved. He pawed at it, hanging round his throat. Then, somehow, he managed to accidentally stab his paw on one of the prongs. He licked it, whimpering slightly.

And then – singing. Through the door came the beautiful sound of singing, a trill that pierced Ryou's heart and held it in his chest. He looked around him. No-one was near. He switched forms, a white light enveloping him, and he stood up.

His clothes were ripped and torn in several places. His hair was bushy and in need of a wash. He was aware of his dishevelled appearance, but he wanted to talk to the girl who sung so beautifully.

He became aware of another feeling – something was attempting to tug him back, but he resisted. He opened the door, and stepped into the room.

"I thought so."

The singing stopped abruptly as soon as Ryou stepped into the room. He looked around, and the girl was sat on the small cabin bed, brushing her shimmering blonde hair.

Now, she stood up and looked him over.

They stood like that for a rather embarrassing minute, until Ryou broke the silence. "Uh… You thought what?"

The girl turned away from him and put her hairbrush away. "Well, come in then. I'm not one to leave another like me out in the corridor."

"An-Another like you?"

"Yes." The girl smiled at him. "You are a Ninetails, no?"

"Um…" Ryou shivered slightly. "Uh… No… I'm just a normal person…"

"Please, don't insult my intelligence. When I stroked you outside, you looked at me with too much clarity for you to be a Pokémon. Usually, also, if a human approached a Ninetails in the wild, it would challenge the human to retain its honour, no matter how strong the trainer. And, if you were trainer-owned, you wouldn't just be sleeping out in the corridor."

Ryou looked confusedly at the girl. "Wait… Where are we?"

The girl looked back at him, eyebrow raised. "This is the S.S Anne, en route to the Takato Region. Where did you think you were?"

Ryou shook his head. "Last I remember, I was in the KaibaCorp building in Celadon. Now, I'm here, and I don't- Don't understand…"

The girl's eyes were concerned now. And there was something else there – recognition? "What happened? You need to tell me everything."

"Oh, what, are you my therapist now?" Ryou sat down on the bed. His entire body ached, he had a headache the size of Kanto and his paw – no, he corrected himself, _hand_ – hurt where he'd jabbed it on the Ring.

"Please, this is important…" The girl's voice was slightly desperate now. Ryou looked at her, and for a second glimpsed something more… Her face was marked with odd triangular shapes, and her eyes had no pupils. Something within him made him recoil from her as if she had burned him.

"Bakura, what's wrong?"

Shocked, Ryou stood up, whatever-it-was trying to get away from her. "How do you know my name?"

"I… don't… Wait! Come back!"

"You said I was like you. How so? What are you?"

The girl sighed and sat. The feeling faded away from Ryou and he sat too, on a chair next to the tiny desk along one wall of the cabin.

"I'm… Cresselia." Ryou watched her as tears began to leak from her rosy eyes. "I don't know how it happened… I was twelve, and I was lying on the floor and I somehow got absorbed into myself… I don't know…"

"What's your name?" Ryou stood up and sat next to the girl, on the bed.

"Oh, right…" The girl sniffed. "We haven't been introduced yet… My name is Metarikku Tsuki Hakuchou Kaguya."

She looked at Ryou's confused face. "Kaguya for short. What's yours?"

"Ryou. Ryou Bakura."

Kaguya looked up at the ceiling. Then, she wrinkled her nose. "You smell like a Pokémon."

Ryou sniffed. "Yes, and?"

"That's not a good thing." She stood and pulled a backpack out from under her bed, opening it and rootling inside it.

Ryou watched her hair reflect the light from a porthole… then turned away, flushing.

Then a little bottle landed neatly in his lap, followed by another and a sponge.

"There's a shower at the end of the row of cabins. That's shampoo and conditioner, to sort out your hair. There's soap and a towel in there."

"Right…"

She looked at him critically. "What are you going to do?"

"Hmm?" The question threw Ryou off guard.

"You say that you came from the KaibaCorp building. Then, presumably the second mind – the mind of the Ninetails - bolted you over here, across half of Kanto, to get on a ship bound elsewhere. That means that you've been running away. If, presumably, you can't return, what are you going to do?"

"I… I don't know…" His hands unconsciously went to the golden ring hung around his neck.

Kaguya's eyes widened. Even though it was faint, she remembered someone doing just that. A white-haired man, slightly tinted pink due to her eyes…

"You need to go and have a shower. Go on."

"Right." Ryou stood and, carrying the little bottles, headed down the corridor towards the shower room.

Kaguya watched him go, and sighed. Diving back into her backpack, she pulled out a small item; A necklace, made of gold, with the triple-circle PsyMark engraved upon it.

_Well… I think I've found him…_

_

* * *

_

Yes, yes. I know I promised a longer chapter, but I really don't have time.

Next chapter _will_ be longer. I promise.

Review?


	7. Invitation, Destiny, Friendship

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon combine to bring you..._

_Thief King... Ninetails?_

_Chapter Six - Invite, Destiny and Friendship._

* * *

"Sir."

Seto Kaiba looked up from his computer. His normally pale skin was gaunt and waxy. It looked like he had aged twenty years in the week since Mokuba was killed.

Roland, his right-hand man, stood in the door of his office. "Sir. Do you really think it was a wise decision not to alert the police? They have agents all over the Regions, and they'll find Bakura in a flash…"

"No." Kaiba's voice was hoarse from crying. Roland had never seen him like this, even after his stepfather had died. "I will find him on my own, and I will make him suffer, like I am suffering."

"But, sir…"

"My decision is final." Kaiba looked at Roland sadly with his deep, sapphire eyes. "Was there anything else?"

"Uh… Yes, sir. You have a letter from the Pokémon League of Takato." He walked to the CEO's desk and handed him a letter. He put a hand on his young charges shoulder, and sighed.

Then he exited the office.

Kaiba opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a small dagger, using it to slit the seal on the envelope.

_Mr. Kaiba, CEO of KaibaCorp._

_Salutations, Mr. Kaiba. In the light of your application to the Takato Region Pokémon League Challenge, we would like to meet you in person. _

_If it is at all possible, could you meet us in Domino City any time this week, so that we can evaluate your claims and test your worthiness to become a Gym Leader._

_We await your reply,_

_Maximillion Pegasus,_

_Zigfried Von Schroider,_

_Arthur Hopkins,_

_Sugoroku Mutoh,_

_The Takato Elite Four._

"Hm."

Kaiba quickly typed out a reply to the Elite Four. Then, he pulled a Pokéball from his belt.

"Alright, Dragonite, you're up."

The deep green Dragon Pokémon burst out of the Pokéball and turned to face him. It looked concerned for him, and Kaiba waved away its unspoken concern.

"I'm fine. Take this letter to the Takato Elite Four Headquarters."

The Dragonite took the letter in its stubbly paws and took off through the open wall-sized window.

Kaiba looked out after it, over the city of Celadon, rose-red in the morning light. The last few days had been torture; He'd organised his little brothers' funeral, and the casket itself had been so small…

He shook his head. This… This was torture. He still expected his little brother to run in, wanting a hug, or telling him to stop working when it was late at night.

_Mokuba…_

* * *

_I finally finished the Puzzle!_

Yugi had woken up that morning with the UmbraMark Puzzle around his neck, completed at last!

He now sat in the kitchen of the house-part of his grandpa's lab, running his hands over the smooth gold, punctuated by cracks where the pieces of the puzzle joined.

The Lucario had slipped out the moment he walked into the kitchen.

His grandpa walked into the room, a large basket of laundry balanced in his arms. Yugi jumped up to give him a hand.

"Thank you, Yugi. Have you seen Lucario? I've got a job for her."

Yugi shook his head. "She left a while ago. Have you checked the training room?"

"Yes, and she's not there. Hm. A dilemma indeed."

The small clock above the oven chimed, and Yugi checked his watch. "Grandpa, your clock's wrong. It's half past seven."

"Oh, so it is." Grandpa grabbed a chair, positioning it underneath the clock and climbing on to it. He took hold of the clock, winding the hands around until it showed the right time.

As he climbed down, he saw the pyramid shape of the Puzzle nestling on his grandson's chest, half hidden by his blue jacket.

_I thought so… Yugi completed the UmbraMark Puzzle. I felt something, last night… And Lucario knows something, though she won't tell me._

"Yugi?"

"Hmm?" Yugi was fetching a few slices of bread, to make toast for his breakfast. "Grandpa, we're out of bread."

"Never mind that, now. I heard from the school that you're currently using an Abra?"

Yugi popped his bread into the toaster. "Yeah… It doesn't listen to me, though."

"Well…" Sugoroku reached into his pocket and pulled out a small red capsule – a Pokéball.

Yugi looked at it. "What's that?"

Sugoroku walked over to Yugi and pressed the Pokéball into his hand. "You'll see. Lucario has been badgering me for a while to give this to you… I'll ring the school and tell them that you've no need to use the Abra any more."

"Great!" Yugi clipped the ball onto his belt, in the spot reserved for the unruly Abra.

There wasn't any sound for the next fifteen minutes apart from the _pop!_ Of the toast and munching as Yugi ate it.

After Yuig had left, the Lucario reappeared in the kitchen. Sugoroku looked at her. "You're worried, old friend. Why?"

"_In solving the UmbraMark Puzzle, the child has brought upon him a dreadful fate."_

"What!?" Sugoroku dropped a slice of toast he'd been buttering. "A… Dreadful fate?"

"_Yes. In the old legends of the Aura Pokémon, there featured an Aura Guardian, who partnered a Cresselia. His greatest enemy, a master thief, made a pact with the Lord of Darkness – a Darkrai infected by its own evil shadows. With the help of the Lords of the Legendary Council – the God Pokémon, Rayquaza, Groudon and Kyogre – he managed to seal away this evil. But the evil was not destroyed – quite the opposite, in fact. It is destined to return, and unleash a wave of Shadows upon the land. In light of this, the Aura Guardian sealed himself within his own artefact – the UmbraMark Puzzle. The fact that the child managed to complete the Puzzle means that the evil had re-awakened. This has awakened the Aura Guardian, and when the two ancient rivals meet they will begin a battle that encompasses every Region and every person."_

Sugoroku looked sadly at his Lucario. "That means…"

"_Yes. A harrowing journey awaits him."_

"Poor Yugi…"

* * *

There was a large crowd in the school courtyard as Yugi walked through the gates, yawning widely. He felt like he hadn't slept for weeks, and muzzily passed through the main doors to the school, missing the exclamations from the crowd…

"_Hey, isn't that…"_

"_Ushio! Yeah!"_

"_Ugh, why is he sitting on a pile of leaves?"_

"_And there's trash there too!"_

"Hey, Yugi." A voice sounded out from a connecting corridor. Yugi turned to see Joey leaning nonchalantly against the wall.

"Oh, hello, Joey! How are you? Um… Ushio beat you up pretty bad…"

"What, these?" Joey indicated his bruised face. "Nah, these are nothing." Yugi looked sceptical, and Joey quickly changed the subject. "Hey, Yugi. I also brought a treasure today."

"Oh, really?" Yugi sounded excited. "What is it? Can I see?"

"Nope!"

"What?"

"Hehehe… My treasure 'is in plain view, but you can't see it!', so I can't show it to you!"

_It's in plain view, but invisible… What could it be? _Yugi was extremely confused.

"It's our friendship! Yugi and Joey are visible, but our friendship is _invisible_!"

Yugi grinned widely. "Yeah!"

Joey looked away, face reddened. "Come on. We gotta get to class." _Why am I saying such embarrassing things today? _He began to lope down the hall towards their formroom. Of course, he just had to drop a shoe on the way didn't he?

"Uh… Joey! You dropped your shoe!"

* * *

_And so begins the epic journey of Yugi, Téa, Tristan and Joey…Will they prevail through all the challenges ahead?_

Awright! Finished Chapter Six, and let me tell you, this was bloody hard to write.

I think, instead of long 2500 word chapters, I'll just stick to short chapters. They're easier to write, and it means I can get updates out quicker to you, my loyal readers.

Questions? Queries?

Love it? Hate it? Review!

(That's the little button below this sentence, by the way.)


	8. The first of Many

More Kaguya! Yay!

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you:_

**_Thief King Ninetails?_**

_Chapter Seven; The first of many._

* * *

Kaguya looked down at the young teen that had commandeered her bed. He was sleeping lightly; his eyes flickered under their lids as he dreamed.

_So this is him… I wish I had more information. How am I supposed to watch him?_

The Cresselia part of her – usually dormant – stirred. _Patience. All will be revealed soon._

_That's easy for you to say. Why you ever roped me into this I don't know._

Cresselia smiled warmly. _You were in the right place in the right time. You took me into you, and saved my life. I will forever be grateful for that._

Kaguya's rosey eyes flickered as she watched the whitenette sleep. Her own long blonde hair was bunched into a rough ponytail at her neck, and it tickled her throat.

Of course, she had preferred it black, but when she and Cresselia had fused together her physical appearance had changed drastically.

The boy stirred, and Kaguya exited the cabin and went to stand on the deserted top deck, watching the sea stir and ripple in the moonlight.

She felt the almost irresistible pull of the moon, even though it was barely half. She wanted to step off the deck, into the air, and fly towards the moon in all her beautiful glory…

She shook herself. _Now is not the time for moon-dreaming. _

OOO

_The UmbraMark Puzzle glowed once, and flashed. In that instant, the Aura Guardian let out his power in one brief burst – straight at Bakura._

_"__My name… is"_

_Bakura screamed as pain blossomed over his body. Then the darkness claimed him._

Bakura bolted awake, gasping. This had happened whenever he'd stopped to rest; he'd relived the last thirty seconds of his real life.

There was always a gap in the memory whenever the Aura Guardian had screamed his name; that was worrying, but the rest would come, in time.

The FireBrand Ring glowed. He looked down at it, and saw one of its prongs pointing upwards and to the left.

_[What the -]_

He stood up and looked down at himself, sniffing with distaste. His host had changed clothes; He was now wearing a pair of dark blue denim shorts and a pink t-shirt. Evidently he had met somebody on this Rayquaza-awful boat.

His theory was confirmed as he looked around the small cabin. There were clothes on the floor, in shades of pink and blue. There was also a back pack open in the middle of the room, and he could see a small spray bottle poking out.

The most pressing problem, however, was the Ring. It was actively tugging him now, towards whatever it might have sensed.

He exited the room, blood-red eyes searching for danger.

OOO

_He is coming._ The weak voice of Cresselia spoke out in her mind. Usually she was a dormant spirit, content to stay and observe but never to influence her partner's day-to-day life.

The urgency in her voice surprised Kaguya. _Who?_

_Him. Please, let me take over. _

_Who is he?_

_An enemy._ And Cresselia refused to say any more.

A sadistic chuckle sounded out in the air behind her. Kaguya turned round.

Stood behind her was Ryou, clad in the clothes she had lent him. The FireBrand Ring hung around his neck and its prongs were pointing directly at her.

_Not Ryou. Please, let me take over!_

"So you are the source of the Ring's agitation." Ryou – or not – paced closer to her, his blood-red gaze seemingly penetrating her mind, as if he could read the secrets within.

Kaguya stepped back warily, and her hand went into her pocket to touch the PsyMark Necklace. She never wore it – well, she would look remarkably stupid wearing that around her neck – but she kept it on her at all times. Its Psychic energy resonated with her and made her feel strong – stronger than she was.

Considering the problem at hand, she decided to play dumb. If this wasn't Ryou, but someone else, then she wouldn't like him to know of her powers and partner yet.

"Ryou? What's the matter?"

That chuckle again. The man in front of her was tense, like a spring coiled to its limit, or a Pokémon about to pounce. "Foolish girl." He paced closer, and Cresselia almost screamed inside her head. _Please! Let me take over!_

Kaguya backed up until she was against the railing. "Ryou… Please, what are you doing?"

A third chuckle. "Pathetic. I thought you, at least would have the foresight to know I was coming… And to know who I am, face-to-face."

He reached into the pocket of his shirt – but then remembered he wasn't wearing his host's favourite outfit any more. He swore. "No knife. No matter. I can tear you apart with fangs and claws instead."

_Let me take over. Please. He's too much for you to take alone, even with your grasp of my power._

The shadow at the other-Ryou's feet began to leach up his body, turning him into a silhouette of pure shadow that twisted and shifted. When the shadows receded, in his place was a snarling black Ninetails with blood-red eyes and the FireBrand Ring around its neck.

OOO

_Yes. He could smell it, now… The distinctive smell of Shadow Magic. Only seven objects had that scent._

_This girl owned a Marked Item._

_The FireBrand Ring confirmed this, pointing its prongs to the girls left pocket. He grinned wolfishly – or should it be foxishly? – And growled._

_Then, the girl… flickered. She changed slightly, and he backed away slightly. Another scent, now – the scent he never wanted to inhale again._

_The girls eyes flickered to him, but now they were pupil less, just expanses of rose-pink that shone with an inner light._

_Her face changed, too… Oval markings leached onto the skin, starting at beneath her earlobes and ending beneath the corners of the mouth. A triangular marking of purest pink leached down from her hairline and took shape, stopping just short of her eyebrows._

_This was old magic. The oldest – This was Partner and Human magic, from before even his time. He knew this._

_He could do it himself, of course. It took time, but when your most trusted partner lay dying, the Old Magic allowed you to take them into yourself. To change into their form, and gain powers and attributes that spoke of that single Pokémon._

_Evidently this girl was only just learning. The Old Magic he sensed from her was weak, but he also sensed something different._

_No. It couldn't be._

_Not here, not now… He had thought he would be free from the tyranny of the Council._

_Cresselia…_

_Of course, all the members of the Council were immortal. They had to be. But every so often one would die of some disease of ancient power, and another would rise to take its place._

_But to live for five thousand years…_

_He shook his head, and growled. If this was truly the Cresselia he had faced all that time ago, then he would have to get her out of the way._

_He growled, and leapt._

OOO

Cresselia opened her eyes.

Well, not hers. These were the eyes of her 'partner'… The one she had allowed herself to fuse with in order to save her own life.

Was that selfish?

Perhaps. But she must do her duty to the Aura Guardian.

And the enemy stood in front of her, attempting to stare her down. Her pupil less eyes looked warily back at him.

None of the two would back down.

Then, without warning, the Ninetails that was her oldest enemy leapt. She threw up a Barrier around herself, and the fox-Pokémon collided with it and was sent skidding backwards over the damp deck. She followed it up with a blast of Psychic power, and the enemy threw up a barrier of Dark Shadows to deflect it and send a wedge of it hurtling back at her.

The Barrier broke as it absorbed the energy, and the enemy ducked in close with a Flame Wheel. She watched as his body ignited and he curled up into a flaming ball, spinning and colliding with her…

Almost.

She Teleported behind him at the last minute, surprising him with a Psycho Cut straight to the back. He let out a blast of air and stumbled forward, colliding with the railing.

He coughed and stood, growling. "How can you be that powerful?" he spat. "You are only half-formed…"

"Half-formed is enough when I have a trusted partner to back me up and a steely resolve in my beating heart." Cresselia's voice rang out loud, and she smiled at her enemy. "You are easy to defeat because you are alone, and are not used to the body you have taken by force."

Bakura shifted back to his human form and spat at the feet of his enemy.

Cresselia turned and frowned. "You will pay for that when I find my objective. Now, though… I think your body needs some sleep. Return to the cabin."

"You don't tell me-"

"I can tell you to do whatever I want. Is it not a custom among thieves that all the subordinates obey the one who beat their leader?"

"Humph." Bakura began to stride back towards the hatch leading belowdecks. On the way, he bumped into her, hitting her with enough force to send her sprawling.

"Whoops. Sorry. Didn't see you there." He maliciously grinned.

OOO

Bakura smiled as he slipped the PsyMark Necklace from the pocket of the Cresselia-Girl and into his own. His thieving fingers were still supple and ready to steal.

* * *

A/N: Yay! Another chapter! Please review, and I'll get the next yugimuffin chapter up!


	9. Disappearance!

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you:_

**_Thief King Ninetails?_**

_Chapter Eight; Disappearance!_

* * *

The first lesson of the day at Domino Academy for Advanced Trainers, nicknamed the Trainer School. The lesson – Type-advantages and how to work them into your tactics. The teacher – a really nice old supply teacher called Ms. Harris.

"And… Wheeler!"

Silence fell as she reached the end of the register.

"Wheeler? Joey Wheeler?"

Nobody answered, and she marked the box with a cross. Gesturing to a different student, she gave him the register and told him to hop it.

He hopped it.

"Alright, class. Take out your Pokémon, but please keep them under control. We don't want a repeat of last weeks Mankey disaster."

The student who owned the offending Mankey blushed slightly.

As the class took out their Pokémon, Yugi turned to Tristan and Téa, who'd come up to his desk as soon as they were allowed out of their seats. "Joey hasn't been to school for a few days now. I hope he's alright."

"He'll be fine." Tristan grinned down at his best friend's little mate, whom he'd grown to respect. "If I know Joey, he'll saunter in at the end of the lesson and grin at everyone."

"I do hope he's OK, though…" Téa let out her Pokémon, a cute Jigglypuff, which turned and smiled at her. It opened its mouth to sing, but she quickly shushed it.

Tristan's Pokémon was next – a very energetic Pikachu that instantly crouched into its battle stance, electric sacs on its cheeks flickering.

And Yugi sent out his Pokémon – A Riolu.

He had been extremely surprised when the little Aura Pokémon had first popped out of its ball. He had suspected that the ball his grandpa had given him had contained a Riolu, but his shock had come from the Pokémon's unusual golden colour. Weren't Riolu supposed to be blue?

Riolu smiled at him and closed his eyes, 'reading' the aura's of the other people in the room. It wasn't extremely good at that yet, but his grandpa's Lucario (Who Yugi strongly suspected to be its mother) had begun teaching it the basics.

Ms. Harris held up her hands for silence. "Now. When I give the order, everyone will leave the room with their Pokémon and join me in the battle grounds. It's a lovely day, so why not spend it outside?"

The class cheered and stampeded towards the door. Téa picked up her Jigglypuff, Pikachu hopped up onto Tristan's shoulder and Riolu ran towards the door. Yugi smiled at his partner's energy.

Outside, the sun beat down on the grassy field that formed the battle grounds. Four 'stadiums' were marked out on the grass; this was where tournaments were held and lessons on strategy and tactics were carried out.

Ms. Harris held out two Pokéballs. "Inside these are my prized pokémon; Roselia and Chimecho. Watch them fight, and at the end we'll run through the battle."

The class sat down on the grass next to one of the stadiums and Ms. Harris let out her Chimecho and Roselia.

"Alright, guys. I want a good clean game."

And, they were off.

Roselia began the battle with a Magical Leaf. Coloured leaves shot from its flower-hands and whirled around Chimecho, cutting at it. Chimecho retaliated with a Wrap, wrapping its tail around Roselia and squeezing.

Roselia shut its eyes and blew out a cloud of little yellow balls, which revealed itself to be Stun Spore after Chimecho unwrapped itself from Roselia and stayed floating, unable to move, electricity flickering around it.

In this absence of offence from Chimecho, Roselia attacked again, this time with a devastating Mega Drain that pulled Chimecho's essence into her own body.

Chimecho didn't like this. It somehow suppressed the paralysis long enough to launch a powerful Psywave that blasted Roselia back and kicked up a lot of smoke. When the smoke cleared, the class was surprised to see the Roselia flat out on its back, fainted. Chimecho waved its tail and tinkled happily, before a beam of red light sucked both Pokémon back into their balls.

"Alright, class. Who can tell me what Type Roselia is?"

Yugi put his hand up. "Grass?"

"You're half right." Ms. Harris looked around at the rest of the class, sprawled around the battle stadium. "Roselia is both Grass and Poison Type. Now, who can tell me what type Chimecho is?"

This time a hand went up on the other side of the stadium to Yugi. "Psychic, miss!"

"Very good. Now, Roselia clearly had the advantage in that match, so why did Chimecho win?"

Yugi wasn't listening any more. Tristan and Téa were having a whispered argument, and he shuffled closer to them to listen.

"_He'll come back under his own steam! Joey wouldn't leave us."_

"_I'm telling ya, we should go and look for him! I know Joey wouldn't abandon us, but he's never been away from school this long…"_

They then noticed Yugi watching them, and Tristan inclined his head. _"Yugi," _he whispered. _"Looks like you get the deciding vote. Do we wait or go look for him?"_

"_I think… We should go and find him. I'm worried, too."_

Tristan grinned at him.

"Excuse me, Mister Taylor."

Tristan looked up to see Miss Harris looking down at him. He hastily stood up, Pikachu becoming dislodged from his shoulder. "Yes, miss! Sorry, miss!"

Their teacher smiled and picked up the grumpy Mouse Pokémon. "Take better care of your Pokémon, Taylor. Now, we've been split into groups to see if you can discover for yourself any Type Advantages that aren't glaringly obvious."

Yugi smiled and stood up too. "Alright. Come on, Riolu, let's find a field."

Riolu chirruped and raced across the Battlegrounds, heading for the only unoccupied field. He dodged a Shockwave from a battling Elekid as he did so, and tripped.

Pikachu leapt off Tristan's shoulder and caught Riolu before he hit the floor. Riolu grinned at him.

When they were at the battle grounds, Riolu looked up at Tristan, arranging itself into a battle stance.

"Looks like Riolu's challenging you," Yugi said, grinning.

"Ready, Pikachu?" Tristan smiled at his partner, and the little Mouse Pokémon jumped into the fighting ring.

The two budding Trainers stood at either end of the Ring, and the fight began!

Riolu led with a Quick Attack, thwacking Pikachu with its tail and jumping back to avoid a hastily blasted Thunder Wave. Pikachu responded in kind, his hard head butting against Riolu's golden-furred chest and sending him stumbling. Riolu leapt forward, launching into a vicious Bite that caught the end of his opponent's tail, making Pikachu leap up into the air, discharging a Thundershock down its tail and blasting Riolu off it. Riolu landed on its feet, crossing its arms over its chest. It began to glow with a blue light as the Endure took effect.

Pikachu ignored this, leaping into the air and again blasting Riolu with Thundershock. Riolu endured the hit, skidding backwards slightly before running forward, jumping, grabbing Pikachu out of the air and slamming him to the ground.

On the sidelines, Jigglypuff danced, acting as a cheerleader for both Pokémon. This fight had drawn quite a crowd as it wore on, both Pokémon refusing to give up.

Then, the bell rang. Riolu and Pikachu immediately stopped fighting, both exhausted by the fight.

They met in the middle of the field and hi-fived each other, before the streams of red light sucked them back into their balls.

"Oh, well done, boys!"

Ms. Harris bustled over and smiled at them both. "Now, you need to go to your next lesson. Go on! Chop-chop!"

Yugi and Tristan grinned at each other before stowing their balls away and walking slowly back into the building for a Trainer Etiquette lesson. Téa caught up with them as they were walking through the main doors.

The rest of the day passed as normal, with one exception; Joey did not 'saunter in and grin at everybody'.

Joey didn't show at all.

As they were walking home, Yugi, Tristan and Téa made plans to meet in town the next day and head over to their friend's apartment. Luckily the next day was a Saturday.

OOO

A/N:

Hello, people! Today we have an extremely special guest! Allow me to introduce my new Beta Tester!

Symond: ^^'

Bakura: Yay! Now we have her brother to torture too!

Ryou: Yami! Be nice!

Yugi: Great to meet you, Symond.

Yami: Likewise.

Litzana: Yay! Let's all open a bottle of champagne!

Symond: ... I hope you'll honour our agreement, sister.

Litzana: What ag- Oh! That agreement! Of course. ^^

Bakura: You know the drill, readers. Review, or I'll pay you a little visit. I know where you live... Muhehe...


	10. Pulling Into Port

_Bakura and Kaaaagu!!!_

_Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokémon come together to bring you;_

**_Thief King Ninetails_**

_Chapter Ten: Pulling Into Port_

* * *

Fire. Flames. Fury.

_His family – mother, sister, his father already killed by Articuno – are herded into the underground temple._

_He followed the Aura Guards in, slipping inside the doors as they slid shut._

"_Bakura!"_

_He hurried down the corridor after the voice. The voice of his sister._

_He broke into the main room of the Temple of Giratina. There sat a bulging cauldron. What looked like molten gold merrily splashed around inside, heated by three Arcanine steadily blasting flames underneath it._

_He scanned the crowd – there had to be at least a hundred people there – and spotted his mother. She clutched the hand of his sister as they were pushed along a walkway that stopped above the cauldron._

_His sister – Amanra – cried out as she was jabbed with a spear. She yelled at the Guard; "You just wait! My brother will come! He'll save us!"_

_The only white-robed Priest in the Temple – one of _his_ priests – glared at the eight-year old girl. "Your brother? I don't see him. Perhaps he has deserted you."_

"_No…" Amanra fell silent. "He can't… He wouldn't…"_

_The priest turned to a Guard with gold-lined uniform – presumably the captain. "At your leisure, Captain."_

"_But, Priest Akenaden, Is this really right?"_

"_We are at war, Captain. Cresselia outlined the instructions perfectly – Ninety-nine souls, into the cauldron of flowing gold. Our Guardian of Aura – Lord Aknamkanon – saw this as an opportunity to rid Takato of this rats nest. I say again. At your leisure, Captain."_

_The Captain looked between the villagers of Kul Elna and his superior. He sighed, and a solitary tear rolled down his cheek as he raised his arm and brought it slashing down._

_The other Guards saw this signal, and began to jab the villagers with their spears. One by one, the people that Bakura had known and loved fell into the light._

_He howled with pain – the breaking of his heart. He dashed forward, his partner Vulpix moving with him as he jumped onto the back of one of the Guards, stabbing at him with the dagger that was his fathers' last gift._

_The guard cried out, his face now a mess of blood and flesh. He fell backwards, and Bakura jumped off._

_Vulpix went straight to the Priest, who savagely kicked it as it tried, but failed to set his clothes alight._

_Bakura gasped as he felt his Partner's pain and another of the guards slashed at him with his spear. It sliced open the left side of his face, and he howled with pain as his eye went dark. He fell backwards, and Vulpix ran to his side. It couldn't stop him from falling into the dark of unconsciousness, though, and it fell too._

_Akenaden scowled at the boy. Then, he turned back to the Captain. "Is that all of them?"_

"_Yes, master Akenaden. Ninety-nine souls."_

"_Good." Akenaden frowned at the boy at his feet. "Move out. I will take it from here."_

"_Yes, sir. But…"_

"_What?"_

"_What do we do with the boy?"_

"_Leave him there. He'll be dead by morning."_

"_Aye, sir."_

_The guards retreated, leaving the unconscious twelve-year old and the cauldron of flowing gold._

Ryou jolted awake, the image of the cauldron still imprinted in his mind. The woman and girl, who looked so much like his own mother and sister… Of course, his own family were dead now. Killed by a rampaging Rhyperior.

He became aware of a weight on his chest. Looking down, he saw a small brown fox-Pokémon curled up on his chest, purring. It yawned and stretched as he sat up, and licked his face before scratching its ruff and jumping off the bed.

Ryou shook his head, and put the dream out of his mind. He'd been having these dreams since he'd received the FireBrand Ring, and so far they hadn't let up. He shook his head and swung himself off the bed as Kaguya walked in.

A strange scent drifted into the room with her, and he sniffed. "Pecha?"

Kaguya grinned, packing the towel she was holding into her rucksack along with her shampoo and conditioner. "Yup! I usually use Iapapa, but I ran out last week, so I've been using my reserve one. Remember, you used it yesterday?"

"Right. Yeah, that's great! I like Pecha."

Kaguya smiled warmly at him, noticing his slightly hounded look. "Bad dream?"

"Yeah." Ryou shook his head and refused to say anything else.

Kaguya looked at him concernedly. "Never mind, huh? I guess it can't be that bad."

Ryou looked gloomily at her.

"Smile!" Kaguya flashed him a dazzling grin. Ryou couldn't help but grin back.

"There, that's better! Smiles make the world go round!" Kaguya shifted her bag on her back and exited the room. Ryou followed her onto the top deck, where they watched Zeta City – Takato's major port – come into view.

Ryou shifted uncomfortably. He thought back to Kaguya's question the previous day – _"What are you going to do?"_

"Kaguya?"

"Hmm?"

"What did you come to Takato for?"

Kaguya smiled at him, and the wind whipped at her hair. "I came to take the Gym Challenge. But first I need to enrol in the Trainer School."

_Liar, _Cresselia stated. _You came to look for him._

_Oh, shush. Anyway, I need to do something now I've found him._

"Oh." Ryou looked downcast. "Do you think… Uh… They'd let me enrol?"

Kaguya frowned. "Well, I guess… But you need a Pokémon, first."

Ryou recoiled. "Catch a Pokémon? Do you know what it's like inside a Pokéball?"

"No. Do you?" Kaguya was interested now.

The wind changed as they pulled into port. Kaguya's hair swept the other way, and the Pecha scent from her hair coupled with her own scent made Ryou blush wildly.

"Uh… I've been told, yeah."

The deckhands began to usher all the passengers off the ship. Kaguya glared at a guy who jostled her, and the guy in turn glared at her back – then spotted Ryou.

Pulling a mobile out of his pocket, he scurried away.

"What was that about?" Kaguya said to Ryou, who was looking worried. His red – Hang on, _red?_ – Eyes flashed and he began to push through the crowd, heading for a secluded place in the port town.

Kaguya hurried after him. _That was him, right?_

_Indeed it was. Be careful._

Kaguya followed the Ninetails-boy into the shopping center, and then stopped as he beckoned her into an alley between the shops.

_He's going to ambush you, and threaten to kill you._

_What!?_

_That's his method._

_Great._

Kaguya walked into the alley.

The next thing she knew, she was pinned against a wall, a very sharp object at her throat. A demonic voice growled into her ear.

"Undo the binding or die."

Kaguya tried not to swallow as the sharp thing – a shard of glass, maybe? There was a lot of it on the floor – threatened to make a bloody red line across her throat. "I… I don't know what you mean!"

"You think I'm a fool? Your Cresselia friend placed a binding on me while I fought her last night. She thought I wouldn't notice. Get her to remove it or both of you die."

"A… A binding?"

_Yes. In accordance with the ancient Thieves Code, if I beat the King of Thieves I become the King of Thieves. I took the opportunity to place a binding upon said disgraced king, so that he could not use his Shdow power to escape from us._

_And now he's going to kill us. Why are you so calm!?_

Bakura shifted his grip on Kaguya. The glass shard accidentally scored a bloody red line across her throat.

"Well?"

Kaguya shut her eyes. _Cresselia! He's going to kill meeee!!_

_Let me take over._

Kaguya instantly withdrew, letting Cresselia take the forefront. Her eyes opened, and glowed slightly as a blast of Psychic energy flung him from her, landing facedown in a pile of similar glass shards.

As soon as the pressure on her neck released, she let Kaguya take over and she hurried to his side.

"Ryou? Ryou?"

She gently turned him over. His face and hands were cut, due to the glass, and he seemed to be unconscious.

_Whoops. I think I went a little overboard… My intent wasn't to knock him out._

Kaguya sighed and pulled a roll of gauze out of her backpack, tearing strips off and wadding it over the places where blood flowed freely.

That would do until she could get him to a Pokémon Center, where they could patch him up properly.

* * *

Yay! Oh, wait... Not yay?

Bakura: Of course it's not bloody yay, you foolish mortal! What the hell did you have to knock me out for?

Ryou: ^^'

Bakura: You people had better review. I'm in a foul mood today!


	11. Lost and Found

Really sorry about the wait, guys. This chapter was the hardest one yet to write.

_**Thief King... Ninetails?**_

_Chapter Ten - Lost and Found_

* * *

"Sir!"

"Mmh?"

Seto Kaiba blearily opened his eyes. The mahogany wood of his desk filled his view, and he sat up. He'd fallen asleep at his desk again – he usually did, now that no-one was there to tell him to stop working.

He wrenched his mind away from thoughts of his brother.

"Sir, we've found him! One of our Takato agents sighted a man that fits the description we sent out of Bakura. He was on the S.S. Anne – it pulled into Zeta City this morning, and he was sighted with a Trainer known as Kaguya."

Kaiba sat up, instantly alert. "You found him? In Takato? Hm. This will be easier than I thought."

He stood, and walked to the window, his back turned to Roland. "I actually made an application to join the Takato Pokémon League, as a Gym Leader there. From a base within the region, I can find him and punish him for what he did."

He reached for a Pokéball at his belt, and tossed it into the air with a flick of his wrist. The ball opened and let out a Salamence, which growled and shook its tail, its emerald scales shining from the light of the enormous window that encompassed the entire wall.

"Roland. I trust you can run the company sufficiently while I'm gone? Good. When Dragonite returns, tell it I've gone to Takato, and to meet me at the KC building there."

He grabbed a remote and pointed it at the window, pressing a button. Grabbing up a briefcase, he jumped astride his Salamence and it turned to face the opening window.

The Salamence jumped out, leaving a rather surprised Roland in its wake. The window slid shut, and he sighed. He should have learned to expect it by now.

* * *

After more debating over the subject of Joey, the gang came to a decision. They'd wait and see if Joey showed up the next day, and if he didn't, they'd go look for him.

But the next day, Joey didn't turn up. Tristan sighed as he looked down at the empty seat. "I did a little snooping yesterday – I even went up to his apartment and asked his dad. No go – He's been missing for a while, apparently. Or, he hasn't _been_ _home_ in a while, anyway."

"So what do we do?" Yugi looked up at Tristan and Téa, hoping they'd have some sort of plan.

Tristan looked around, checking if they would be overheard. "We wait, and if Joey doesn't turn up by lunchtime, we bunk off and go search."

"But that'll get us all into trouble!"

"Relax. What's the worst that could happen?"

_Three hours later…_

Their plan for getting out of school was put to action.

In the middle of class, five minutes before the bell, Yugi fainted. Tristan and Téa immediately rushed to him, and the teacher gave them a hall pass so they could see the nurse.

The nurse – who was wise to tricks like this – had asked them; "So why do you three want to bunk off, then?"

They'd replied, with all honesty; "We're worried about a friend, who hasn't turned up to school in a while."

So the nurse had sent them all home, under the pretence that "Yugi needs to get some rest. Can you two help him home?"

_An hour later_

"I still think we should have just sloped away during lunchtime," Tristan whined.

"Nonsense. My way was much safer. You know, they put teachers on the gates to stop students from sneaking out?"

"Oh, yeah."

Yugi shook his head and grinned at the argument going on over his head. They had decided to search the park first, then the arcade, then the main road, to look for Joey.

But he wasn't in the park. They spent a full ten minutes there, and searched every nook and cranny that Joey might be, but he wasn't there.

The arcade, next, then.

He wasn't there either – the only people who were were a gang of kids from the Orrin City Trainer School, and a nastier bunch of people you'd never meet.

They turned to leave, when a voice spoke out behind them.

"You think you're so tough?"

The trio turned, but this statement obviously wasn't aimed at them. Then something caught Tristan's eye…

"_Joey_?"

Indeed – one of the Orrin kids _was _Joey, wearing the Orrin School uniform, and hanging with the nastiest gang of bullies in the Region… What was going on?

"Joey!" Téa shouted.

Joey ignored them.

Yugi went up to his best friend. "Joey? What are you doing, hanging around with these people?"

One of Joeys new 'friends', who wore a beanie hat and was smoking a cigarette, nudged him. "Hey, you know these wimps?"

Joey looked down at Yugi sadly. "Naw. Never seen 'em before." He nudged the beanie kid back. "Come on, let's go."

"Joey!" Yugi cut in front of him, arms outstretched, eyes pleading. "What are you-"

The beanie kid made his move. Pulling a Pokéball out of his belt, he tossed it to the floor. "Croagunk, go! Poison Jab!"

The Croagunk attacked Yugi and left him face down on the floor. The Beanie kid knelt down and put out his cigarette on Yugi's uniform. "Listen, kid. Word to the wise. Keep outa our way. He don't know you, so it might end badly for you if you keep screwing wid us…"

He laughed and took his leave, recalling his Croagunk as he did so.

Téa rushed to Yugi and shouted at Joeys retreating back. "Joey, you ungrateful little… We came looking for you! We were worried about you!"

Joey ignored her, and walked away, leaving his one-time friends behind.

Tristan frowned. "I recognised one of the guys in that gang. That's Hirutani – and if he's showed up, then nothing good will come of it."

Téa helped Yugi up, and frowned. "Yugi, can we come over to your place tonight? We need to make a plan of action."

Yugi nodded. "Alright. I'll ask Grandpa if you two can stay over at the lab tonight. Tomorrow's a Saturday – he won't mind."

Unknown to him, a Spirit had seen everything. And he didn't like what he'd seen.

* * *

_Unknown location. _

"Heh. You guys shoulda seen the way my Croagunk took down that little punk." Beanie laughed, and hi-fived the frog Pokémon.

Joey scowled. "That's my bud you're talkin' about. And let me tell ya somethin'. You're gonna pay."

Beanie laughed. "With what?"

Joey pulled a Pokéball from his belt.

Beanie laughed harder. "You really think your little pipsqueak doggy could beat my Croagunk? We'll see."

Joey tossed the ball in the air, releasing his partner and friend – the little green dog Pokémon, Electrike.

Beanie looked to either side of him, where the other members of the gang watched in anticipation of a fight. "You guys seein' this? Tell you what, Joey, old pal. If you beat me, I bet the boss'll just let you walk outa here. If I beat you, well, all the damage'll be blamed on you and you'll get punished for insubordination. How about that?"

Joey looked around him. The gang hideout wasn't totally clean, but nothing was broken. "What damage?"

A gang member that Joey recognised as Hulk – his nickname, obviously – cracked his knuckles. "How much do you want?"

The gang chuckled.

Joey scowled at Beanie. "Fine. Dis is for Yugi! Electrike, attack!"

* * *

Yay! More 'Kura and Kagu next, as Ryou finds his first Pokémon!


	12. A Special Surprise

Yay, new chapter! Wow, I'm really churning them out, huh?

_**Thief King... Ninetails?**_

_Chapter Eleven - A special surprise_

* * *

Ryou had been released from the small city hospital after an overnight stay. The nurse on duty had removed all the glass and his various cuts and scrapes healed up overnight – much to her surprise.

Kaguya had later learned that Ryou had an enhanced rate of healing, a part of his being half Pokémon.

"Would have been good to have known that earlier," she had grumbled.

"But you didn't ask," was his wide-eyed, innocent reply.

The two were just wandering down the main street, looking at all the shops. The Ring was tucked out of sight beneath Ryou's shirt.

The objective of their shopping trip – clothes. Ryou's clothes were ripped and torn beyond repair thanks to his flight out of Kanto. It was slightly bizarre – Even though he was in his Ninetails form, his clothes were still affected by the environment. If a thorn tugged at his fur, it tore his shirt, for example.

It was also expensive. The few clothes shops they passed had exorbitantly high price tags, and though Ryou had his wallet, and therefore his bank card, he wasn't sure he wanted to share this fact with Kaguya.

After buying a few cheap shirts and jeans from Pokémark (The cheapest shop he could find), and a light blue backpack to store it in, the duo headed to a coffee shop.

Ryou emptied his wallet buying Kaguya a black coffee and a Danish pastry and himself just a tea.

After emptying six packets of sugar into her coffee, Kaguya spoke. "We really need to get you a Pokémon."

"Huh?" Ryou almost spilt his tea at the unexpected announcement. "But… Kaguya, in case you hadn't noticed, I… uh… _am_ a Pokémon?"

"Yeah, I know, but so am I, and I still need protection." Kaguya smiled and pulled out the little red ball that contained her Eevee. "After all, it's a cruel world out there."

Ryou swirled his tea, watching it slosh around the take-away cup. "I don't know, Kaguya… I've heard stories from Pokémon that have been caught, and I don't really want to subject any Pokémon to that…"

Kaguya chuckled. "You won't have to, silly. There's an adoption centre just round the corner from here, which abandoned Pokémon are taken to. We'll find one for you there – no need to subject any more Pokémon to the 'torture' of being caught, hmm?"

Ryou nodded. "Uh… sure." He stood, and followed Kaguya down the street.

"Psst. Hey."

Ryou stopped. Kaguya, unaware of this, kept going.

"Come over 'ere."

Ryou looked around him again, locating the figure in a dark alley. It was hooded, the darkness in the alley hiding its face and figure.

"Who are you?" Ryou stepped closer. Not a wise move.

The figure lunged forward and grabbed him, pulling him into the alley. Immediately, he was surrounded by half a dozen men, who pulled out glinting knives.

The figure released him. "Now, hand over all yer money, kid, or we'll hafta get real nashty."

Ryou backed away, instantly frightened. Knifes do that to a person. "I'm sorry… I don't have any…"

The men moved closer. "No, I think you do," said the hooded man.

Ryou shook his head. "Really, I don't…" He remembered the cup of tea in his hand. In a split-second decision, he threw the boiling liquid over the man, turned and fled.

He didn't get far, though. One of the men with knives caught him in a flying tackle, bringing him down.

He rolled over, stunned. His head had hit the floor pretty hard. The man who had brought him down slashed him on the arm with his knife and Ryou howled with pain.

The Firemark Ring flashed, and the thug was as surprised as hell when the knife was knocked out of his hand, snatched up and used on him.

Within seconds, the man's face was a bloody mess. Bakura shoved the thug off him, ignoring his screams of pain. With a grin, he licked the warm blood off the knife, enjoying the salty taste and the other thugs' horrified expressions.

"Yum. Who's next?"

The men scattered, leaving Cloak – the original guy – behind.

Bakura advanced on him, twirling the knife. "Now, I'll do you a deal. I won't kill you… If you give _me_ all of _your_ money."

The man backed away. "Oh Uxie, please, don't hurt me! I'll give you anything!"

Bakura raised an eyebrow. "You worship Uxie? Pah! A worthless god and a powerless one at that." He grinned and stuck out a hand. "Hand it over."

The man dug out a pretty full leather bag and flung it at Bakura's feet. Bakura stepped aside and he fled.

Bakura grinned. "I must be getting soft," he said, and scooped up the bag, depositing it in a pocket of his backpack. He stowed the blade in his jeans pocket, after discovering he could retract the blade.

Humming to himself, he wiped the blood from his hands and face and strolled out of the alley.

Kaguya was waiting for him on the corner, looking anxiously into the crowd. He returned Ryou to control as soon as he saw her, and she dragged him away. "Ryou! What are you like! Come on, I asked you to follow me, not just get sidetracked or something!"

Ryou shrugged. "Sorry, Kaguya… I guess everything is just really interesting. I've never been to Takato before."

In truth, he couldn't remember what he'd been doing. He didn't want to worry Kaguya, though.

The Cresselia-girl dragged him round the corner to a large grey building, the words 'Adoption center' printed above the doorway in red. He frowned slightly. "This is it?"

"What were you expecting? A Day-care Centre layout? Nah, this is it. It's amazing inside, though."

She gently pushed him through the door.

They emerged into a spacious lobby, A small old man with a Chatot on his shoulder looked over to them. "Kaguya?"

Kaguya smiled. "Yep! How're you doing, Grandpa Peter?"

Ryou raised an eyebrow. "Grandpa?"

The old man smiled benignly at them. "I am like a grandfather to all the Pokémon here, so the name stuck. What can I do for you today, Kaguya? Are you looking for a companion to Kallinda? We've got three Eevee at the moment… Left in a cardboard box on our doorstep, bless them. They're up on floor 3, if you want to see them."

Kaguya shook her head. "No, thanks, Grandpa. We're actually here because Ryou wants a Pokémon, but he doesn't want to catch one… Could you lend a hand?"

"_Lend a hand?" _The Chatot squawked in an imitation of Kaguya's voice. Grandpa grinned. "Just ignore old Metronome here. You get used to it after a while."

"_Get used to it!"_

Grandpa cast a piercing look at Ryou. "Hmm. Does he have a Trainers' License?"

Ryou shook his head. "No, sir."

"Well, then… I can give you a Pokémon, but you can't battle with it until you get one. Okay? You can register for a License at any Pokémon Center."

"Thank you, sir." Ryou smiled.

Grandpa bustled over to a desk at the far wall, picking up a small envelope. "Here – your adoption forms. Fill them in when you choose your Pokémon."

Ryou took the forms, and looked around. "But where are they?"

The old man smiled. "Why, in the Complex, of course. I and my staff have managed to simulate every kind of environment that Pokémon live in." He picked up a map and handed it to Ryou. "Kaguya knows her way around here pretty well, but you might need this if you're to wander."

Kaguya dragged Ryou to the elevator. "Come on, Ryou! Let's go!"

The next hour was a whirlwind for Ryou. They visited the Tower section – the haunt of Ghost- and Dark-type Pokémon. They visited the Volcano – the Fire-type home.

They passed quickly through the Foggy Forest – Bug- and Poison-types weren't really Ryou's thing.

When they emerged, Ryou was cradling a tiny Eevee in his arms. When they'd reached the Sunshine Plateau area, the little furry bundle had attached itself to him and not let go.

"It's a good choice," said Kaguya. "After all, he'll get on well with Kalli!"

Ryou smiled at the sleeping Pokémon. "Yes… I like him too. What should I name him?"

Kaguya shrugged. "Your choice, Ryou."

Ryou handed over the forms to Grandpa, who was stood behind the desk. "What do you think? I'm not really very good at making up names."

Grandpa looked at the tiny Eevee. "Well, it depends on what you want it to evolve to. 'Blaze' is a popular Flareon name… Then there's 'Luna', for Umbreons, but that's a female name… How about 'Star'?"

"Hmm…" Ryou chewed his lip, thinking. "I think… Does 'Ace' sound like a good name? It's neutral, because I'm not really sure what I want him to evolve to."

"Sounds good to me." Grandpa carefully inked 'Ace' onto the form. He reached down below the desk and pulled out a small green Pokéball. "Here."

Ryou looked at it. "I haven't seen that ball before… What kind is it?"

Grandpa chuckled. "Well, it's just a Pokéball painted green, is all. I thought it would remind Trainers where they got their Pokémon."

Ryou smiled. "Okay… But, uh, I can't accept it…"

"Why not?" Grandpa raised an eyebrow.

Ryou chewed his lip again. "Uh… Well… I just can't."

Kaguya took the ball instead. "Thank you, Grandpa. He's just a little sensitive… Doesn't like keeping them cooped up, is all."

"Oh, alright. Well, I hope to see you soon, Kaguya."

"You too, Grandpa." Kaguya gave the old man a hug, and rubbed Metronome's head. "See you!"

And the duo walked out of the Adoption Centre, with Ryou holding his new Pokémon.

"So. Where should we go next?"

* * *

Next chapter - we find out what's happened to Joey, and Seto gets an unexpected surprise. Laters, everyone!

Bakura: And remember to review. Otherwise I could do to you what I did to that thug. That's right... I could insult _your_ god and steal _your_ money! Ha!


End file.
